CoFED bloghttp://www.cofed.coop/blog
Minneapolis and the Cooperative Youth Convergence<p dir="ltr"><span>MINNEAPOLIS! We have been eager to make a trip out to this cooperative metropolis, so we couldn’t have been more excited when the</span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/USACYC"><span> Cooperative Youth Council (CYC)</span></a><span> announced that their third convergence CYC3CYC (Cooperative Youth Council’s 3rd Cooperative Youth Convergence) would be in this beautiful city. While we want focus on the convergence itself, allow us a quick aside to say, Co-ops are literally everywhere here; from the </span><a href="http://ledc-mn.org/mercadocentral.php"><span>Mercado Central</span></a><span>, a merchant’s cooperative; to </span><a href="http://www.sewardcafe.com/"><span>Seward Cafe</span></a><span>, a non-profit cooperative workers collective;</span><a href="http://seward.coop/"><span> Seward Community Co-op</span></a><span>, a great grocery boasting over 11,000 members; </span><a href="http://www.riverton.org/chateau"><span>Chateau Co-op</span></a><span>, a 20 story housing co-op; and the </span><a href="http://www.thehubbikecoop.org/"><span>Hub bike co-op</span></a><span>, a worker owned bike store.These were just the ones we got to see, but if you love geeking out on co-ops Minneapolis should definitely be one of your next stops. And while Minneapolis is far from perfect, there are the seeds of what thriving, equitable communities look like; and perhaps some useful models and case studies as we work to build resilient local economies. </span></p>
<p><img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-THLWik1FZj0/VDHb8xwVOwI/AAAAAAAAA0Q/7JOmZmtfuOI/w433-h577-no/IMG_20140928_152828.jpg" alt="HUB Bike Co-op Art" width="433" height="577"></p>
<p> </p>Thu, 06 Nov 2014 11:24:00 -0500Yahya Alazrakhttp://www.cofed.coop/minneapolis_and_the_cooperative_youth_convergence
Looking Back to our Future<p><span style="font-size: 12px;">Reposted from the New Economy Week blog, <a href="http://neweconomyweek.org/blog">http://neweconomyweek.org/blog</a>. </span></p>
<p><img src="http://neweconomyweek.org/sites/default/files/styles/blog_post/public/wedge%20foods.jpg?itok=6xWa2pfn" alt="" width="300" height="252"></p>
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<div class="field-item even">Climate change, shifting demographics, and <a href="http://www.prb.org/Publications/Articles/2013/us-working-poor-families.aspx">sobering economic realities</a> for a growing number of Americans have sparked increased awareness of the need to re-examine how working class people and communities of color will successfully participate in tomorrow’s economy, the one they will inherit when our nation<a href="http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2013/10/22/2816361/survey-conservatives-diversity-future/"> becomes an ethnic plurality</a>. </div>
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</div>Wed, 29 Oct 2014 15:01:00 -0400Farzana Seranghttp://www.cofed.coop/looking_back_to_our_future
Stories from the Road<p>CoFED's Field Organizer, Anna Isaacs, shares stories from the road as she visits students and youth cooperators in California. </p>
<p><img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/394/attachments/original/1413382964/3rd_try.png?1413382964" alt="3rd_try.png" width="468" height="350" /></p>Wed, 15 Oct 2014 10:30:17 -0400Anna Isaacshttp://www.cofed.coop/stories_from_the_road
"We Want A Coop"<p>Healthy. Affordable. Community Owned. </p>
<p>That's what the community of Greensboro, North Carolina wants and deserves as a community, but don't take my word for it. Hear what the members of <a href="http://renaissancecoop.com/we-want-a-coop/">Renaissance Community Coop</a> have to say in this great video:</p>
<p><iframe class="embedly-embed" src="//cdn.embedly.com/widgets/media.html?src=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fembed%2FxM1YX_BEEZ4%3Fwmode%3Dtransparent%26feature%3Doembed&amp;wmode=transparent&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DxM1YX_BEEZ4&amp;image=http%3A%2F%2Fi.ytimg.com%2Fvi%2FxM1YX_BEEZ4%2Fhqdefault.jpg&amp;key=e1208cbfb854483e8443b1ed081912ee&amp;type=text%2Fhtml&amp;schema=youtube" width="600" height="338" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></p>
<p>Greensboro is showing us how a community can come together to build a grocery store that serves their needs. Good food, good jobs, and good money is something that brings people together. By working together, the possibility of what can be created grows.</p>
<p>So as you're building a cooperatively-run food business think about how you might be able to connect to the larger campus community, beyond the schools walls. What are the neighborhoods nearby doing? What community organizations have you reached out to? How might your support local efforts that align with your own? How can we support each other in our learning and longing for more thriving and equitable communities? </p>
<p>Brown University worked to serve their campus community and wanted to be conscious of not duplicating efforts in the larger community. They also recognized that cafeteria workers's access to healthy food is just as limited as students, so they designed their "<a href="http://issuu.com/brownmarketshares/docs/marketsharesbook_final_forweb">Market Shares</a>" program at Brown University to benefit students, staff, and workers. </p>
<p><a href="http://renaissancecoop.com/we-want-a-coop/">Renaissance Community Coop</a> is also showing us that a grocery store goes beyond good food, it's also about good jobs, accessibility, and community ownership. </p>
<p>Thanks for sharing your story Greensboro!</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>Tue, 16 Sep 2014 14:59:00 -0400Farzana Seranghttp://www.cofed.coop/_we_want_a_coop
A Year in Reflection<p dir="ltr">Just about a year ago, CoFED was gearing up to launch our first Regional Organizer Fellowship. The Fellowship was designed, on the advice of previous Regional Organizers (ROs), to prioritize ongoing training, support, and professional development opportunities. We were amazed to receive more than 80 applicants, and chose a group of 5 amazing young leaders who the CoFED network has grown to love and appreciate! They have worked to train, connect, and “inspiregize” college students to start and improve student-run food cooperatives across North America. Now, as the year-long experience is coming to a close, we’d like to update the network about where CoFED is headed from this first class of Fellows, and say THANK YOU to the ROs and all that they have accomplished:</p>
<div style="text-align: center;" dir="ltr">Eric Recchia</div>
<div style="text-align: center;" dir="ltr">Lauryl Berger-Chun</div>
<div style="text-align: center;" dir="ltr">Ruby Levine</div>
<div style="text-align: center;" dir="ltr">Whitney Bard</div>
<div style="text-align: center;" dir="ltr">Yahya Alazrak</div>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/4HtqpLbLJuK_2v5kHl_V1LbSAh9UWNrd1-W5P29tn3HLJkGvJ9mhQ8mJm9TL1pBj5TqhCqz15pM3lEMfMRLflrR0lRFTMlNtlv3qzMM5aoYo1S58o1rcI2NPWrj4L_bIsg" alt="Screen shot 2014-05-07 at 2.45.00 PM.png" width="385" height="297" /></p>
<p> </p>Tue, 27 May 2014 01:46:00 -0400Anna Isaacshttp://www.cofed.coop/a_year_in_reflection
Mid-Atlantic/Southeast Convergence: Cooperation Amongst Cooperatives<p><span id="docs-internal-guid-880ca609-d38a-ac7d-a08d-0767da8bcbfe"><span>Early this spring, just after break and just before the crunch of finals, over </span><strong>50 young cooperators </strong><span>converged at Guilford College in Greensboro, North Carolina for what proved to be an amazing weekend. Folks from Indiana to Maryland to North Carolina</span><strong> learned together</strong><span>, from each other, became more excited about their co-ops, and most importantly </span><span><strong>built</strong> </span><span>a sense of </span><span><strong>community</strong> </span><span>and this </span><span><strong>movement</strong> </span><span>together. I have to say, I didn’t know what this year as the Mid-Atlantic &amp; Southeast Regional Organizer was going to be like, but sharing that space with so many </span><strong>amazing people</strong><span> working on equally</span><strong> inspiring projects</strong><span>, was a loud and clear confirmation of the</span><strong> importance of this work</strong><span>. </span></span></p>
<p> <img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/367/attachments/original/1399413612/1979129_303326099821851_8972089237362288138_o.jpg?1399413612" alt="A bunch of student cooperators standing together posing" width="750" height="400" /></p>
<p>(Rose City, the Greenleaf, UNCG, Firestorm, and Maryland Food Collective members; after other teams had left on Sunday)</p>Tue, 06 May 2014 18:26:12 -0400Yahya Alazrakhttp://www.cofed.coop/mid_atlantic_southeast_convergence_cooperation_amongst_cooperatives
Northeast Student Cooperative Convergence<p>After the Winter months of planning by students of cooperation, <strong>the Northeast Student Cooperative Convergence in Amherst, MA happened &amp; was beautiful!</strong></p>
<p><img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/366/attachments/original/1398709412/1382285_227356134124879_9104915888992381273_n-1.jpg?1398709412" alt="1382285_227356134124879_9104915888992381273_n-1.jpg" width="744" height="494" /></p>
<p> </p>Mon, 28 Apr 2014 14:31:00 -0400Lauryl Berger-Chunhttp://www.cofed.coop/northeast_student_cooperative_convergence
Regional Organizer Retreat <p><img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/353/attachments/original/1396538478/Screen_shot_2014-04-03_at_8.19.27_AM.png?1396538478" alt="Screen_shot_2014-04-03_at_8.19.27_AM.png" width="468" height="305" /></p>
<p>CoFED's Regional Organizers are spread out across the country doing amazing work to support and connect student-run food coops in and across regions. A few times a year, they get to come together for the joyous occasion of face-to-face contact -- no more Skype fuzz or Google Hangout hats keeping them a part! The mid-year retreat provides them with further team-building and training that builds upon the work that they have accomplished thus far in the Fellowship, and of course, gets them stoked to continue their organizing efforts in the second half of the school year. Here are some of the highlights...</p>
<p> </p>Thu, 03 Apr 2014 12:23:00 -0400Anna Isaacshttp://www.cofed.coop/regional_organizer_retreat
Thank you to all the CoFED Sustainers<p><span id="docs-internal-guid-0cba581d-8998-1ecc-2801-7d83a1eeca3f"><span>Our community continues to grow, as people share their passions and support something they love!</span></span></p>
<p><span><span><img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/350/attachments/original/1393878192/Farzana__ExecutiveDirector.jpg?1393878192" alt="Farzana__ExecutiveDirector.jpg" width="146" height="223" /> <img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/350/attachments/original/1393878210/Whitney__NorthwestRO.jpg?1393878210" alt="Whitney__NorthwestRO.jpg" width="148" height="224" /> <img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/350/attachments/original/1393878221/Yahya__Mid-Atliantic_SoutheastRO.jpg?1393878221" alt="Yahya__Mid-Atliantic_SoutheastRO.jpg" width="148" height="226" /></span></span></p>Mon, 03 Mar 2014 15:35:47 -0500Megan Svobodahttp://www.cofed.coop/thank_you_sustainers
Meet CoFED's new Intern, Brian Clement<p>Every year we hire a handful of interns who are looking to learn more about food and the cooperative world. We create an opportunity for them to explore these interests, make connections, and gain skills. This new year Lauryl will be working with Brian Clement to organize the Northeast Spring Student Cooperative Convergence! </p>Thu, 26 Dec 2013 09:56:00 -0500Megan Svobodahttp://www.cofed.coop/new_intern_brian
Shift the Power! - Stories from Power Shift 2013<p dir="ltr"><span>A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to join more than seven thousand youth activists from around the country in Pittsburgh for an inspiring and empowering three days, filled with peer-led workshops, panels, breakouts, and keynotes, culminating in a protest march through the streets and an occupation of a local official’s office that had approved fracking in county parks.</span></p>
<p><span><span><br><img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/s4warowNKSFmWayYYaC4hU0yUk-agw7yme-W7Dak5IKZUYDL9hYXex_XVT1JSJagyli8Haxi1kdQlad7EZk8DdY_kmOHg0oecl7oCcmWzzhZ_Jjsw1NgTGkP4Q" alt="" width="456px;" height="304px;"></span></span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><em>[Activists marching across the Roberto Clemente Bridge in Pittsburgh. Photo Credit: Julian Ehrlich]</em></p>
<p><span>We came together to learn more about the different problems caused by the fossil fuel economy in communities all around our country, hearing stories from those being directly impacted first hand. We came together to share the work that we, the people in those communities and their allies, are doing to fight back. We came together to envision what an equitable, just, and thriving future could look like and plan how we are going to make it happen. We came together to organize, strategize, commiserate, and celebrate. We came together for </span><strong>Power Shift 2013</strong><span>.</span></p>Wed, 04 Dec 2013 16:17:00 -0500Eric Recchiahttp://www.cofed.coop/shift_the_power_stories_from_power_shift_2013
Road Trip: I <3 Down To Earth<p><img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/168/attachments/original/1384805721/DTE.png?1384805721" alt="DTE.png" width="618" height="440" /></p>
<p dir="ltr">-October 10, 2013-</p>
<p dir="ltr">I’m starting off the road trip to meet up with Yahya in the land of some of the greenest trees I've ever seen and <strong>I’m always excited to get to visit a cooperative I have had the honor to know &amp; love for going on a year now: </strong><strong><a href="http://downtoearthfoodcoop.wix.com/downtoearthfoodcoop">Down To Earth Food Coop</a></strong><strong> (DTE)</strong>.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/168/attachments/original/1384815264/395116_10151150143026645_1804773397_n-1.jpg?1384815264" alt="395116_10151150143026645_1804773397_n-1.jpg" width="641" height="481" /> </p>
<p dir="ltr">But seriously, they're the most lovable. It's not hard.</p>
<p><img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/168/attachments/original/1384805832/DTEtwo.png?1384805832" alt="DTEtwo.png" width="645" height="249" /> </p>
<p dir="ltr">Yahya and I go on an adventure with Paul and Lauren to the Goodwill where Paul is getting supplies for constructing a water filter gift, Lauren finds an awesome collection of jars for keeping all the things in, and we find a sturdy table cloth for banner making purposes. On this visit, I also catch a cold, an auspicious beginning for any journey, but Yahya makes some magic garlic ginger lemon honey cayenne tea and I fight it by napping on the futon. The no-bake cookies Libby offers for breakfast-DTE’s catering Newark Bike Project’s opening in their new location-also help. Member dinner features wild foraged foods: chicken of the woods mushrooms, Chinese chestnut, nettles: if I were to choose a place to get sick and try to get well, this would definitely be it. There is some good kitchen table conversation with Elana, Libby and Lauren about some great questions around how to direct the energies of the group, to divide labor equitably, to continue to empower people, size &amp; structure, food politics, &amp; baking times. These are all great problems to have and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DownToEarthFoodCoOp">DTE</a> has opened up space to negotiate and debate these in a way that wasn't offered by corporate foodservice at U Del. </p>Mon, 18 Nov 2013 18:57:00 -0500Lauryl Berger-Chunhttp://www.cofed.coop/roadtrip2013
Towson and the Ewoks- Road Trip Update 4<p>As you may recall from my writings on <a href="http://www.cofed.coop/first_road_trip_update">Auburn</a>, this <strong>big school thing</strong> is new to me. Yet, while there is learning curve for me in understanding the campus contexts of the schools like <strong>Auburn</strong>, <strong>UNC</strong>, and <strong>Towson</strong> (North of Baltimore); the people I am meeting fill me only with familiar <strong>inspiration</strong> and <strong>excitement! </strong></p>
<p><strong><br></strong>This is the story of my journey to the <strong>Forest</strong> <strong>Moon</strong> of <strong>Endor</strong>.</p>
<p><img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d4/PlanetEndor.jpg" alt="" width="400" height="300"></p>
<p>I was introduced via email to Tori through Jon Berger of <strong><a href="http://www.realfoodchallenge.org/">Real Food Challenge</a>. </strong>She is interested in <strong>starting</strong> a <strong>cafe/restaurant</strong> on her campus, stemming from her involvement with the on campus <strong>urban farm</strong>. Once again, through our phone calls and skype chats, I thought that things would be hard and that<strong> Chartwells</strong> would be a monolith in our way. Once again, visiting campus exposed some<strong> beautiful loopholes</strong>. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>Fri, 25 Oct 2013 14:34:04 -0400Yahya Alazrakhttp://www.cofed.coop/towson_and_the_ewoks_road_trip_update_4
Packing our bags and headed to NASCO! <p>CoFED staffers - Lauryl Berger-Chun, Yahya Alazrak, Ruby Levine, Anna Isaacs, and Farzana Serang - can't wait for the NASCO Institute this year! CoFED's work is at the heart of food justice and cooperatives, and so we are especially excited about this year's theme, "A Fire in Our Bellies".</p>
<p><strong>Why can't it just hurry up and be November 1st already!?</strong></p>
<div><img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/165/attachments/original/1382648686/Screen_shot_2013-10-24_at_2.00.13_PM.png?1382648686" alt="Screen_shot_2013-10-24_at_2.00.13_PM.png" width="409" height="249" /></div>Thu, 24 Oct 2013 18:03:00 -0400Anna Isaacshttp://www.cofed.coop/packing_our_bags_for_nasco_institute
Local Food and Michael Jordan- Road Trip Update 3<p>After an all too brief sojourn at home in Greensboro I <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLBKOcUbHR0">packed up my things</a> and wandered into what would surely a good and new adventure. I drove past familiar road side vistas, not terribly breathtaking on this stretch between the Triad and the Triangle, but familiar still were the Cook Out signs and truck stops. It would be some time before I came back driving the opposite direction.</p>
<p><img src="http://eatcookout.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/350front.jpg" alt="" width="350" height="350"></p>
<p>I spent my evening on the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill where FLO Foods (Fair Local Organic) is dreaming of a grocery store where students can have access to healthy local and affordable food. Walking across the quad my belly carried mixed contents of proper nerves and excitement. I had never met these folks before, I didn't know what they expected of me and if I could deliver, but I also knew that this job is one I have wanted since I first learned what a student coop was, this work is love. And like any labor love, the nerves and excitement are what make those first steps special. </p>
<p> </p>Tue, 22 Oct 2013 01:27:48 -0400Yahya Alazrakhttp://www.cofed.coop/local_food_and_michael_jordan_road_trip_update_3
Summer Travel Tales in California<p dir="ltr">In the last two months, I've had the opportunity to take three wonderful trips with CoFED as a regional organizer.</p>
<p> <img src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/VkvVxA77hWMA29YVuM-dJ6RUjvx3hQpqZ4rcH-DK6EDXXtu01ZhjvOg48j44NaQDwcjPDL8N-OemRvE-fIIzeaAsJtk2paiLciCeaNG7TSZXUWff5O74v4IT" alt="" width="259" height="310"></p>
<p><em>Routes for all 3 trips. Over 2,000+ miles!</em></p>
<p dir="ltr">The first of these trips, spread over ten days at the beginning of August, was for the <strong>Regional Organizer Fellowship bootcamp</strong>. Myself, CoFED admin staff (our new Executive Director, Farzana Serang, our Organizing Coordinator, Anna Isaacs, and our Operations and Communications Manager, Megan Svoboda), our four other Regional Organizers (Whitney in the Northwest, Lauryl in the Northeast, Ruby in the Midwest, and Yahya in the Mid-Atlantic), Rebecca, our Community College Program Developer, and our friends, peers, and mentors gathered together for teaching and sharing with each other. We spent most of the ten days in Berkeley and Oakland, except for three days spent on an intentional community in Sebastopol.</p>Wed, 16 Oct 2013 16:41:15 -0400Eric Recchiahttp://www.cofed.coop/fall2013caroadtrips
Road Trip Update 2 - CoopEcon<p>Weaving through the back roads of Alabama, I am reminded of a problem plaguing our country: where there were once local business there are now national chains, and perhaps more importantly they are businesses that extract wealth. </p>
<p>Winding around the curves we find the entrance to the <a href="http://federation.coop/">Federation of Southern Cooperatives</a> Research and Training Facility and Forestry Center (if you live in the south you can get a membership for only $25). Down the dirt road, and through the woods we arrive at a happy compound of 1 story dorm buildings and a community center. </p>
<p>There is so much to bring me joy in this space, the conference's core constituents are Southern, Low-Income, Folks of Color. These we're definitely the people there, people with histories of creative resistance and who know that what works one place doesn't work everywhere. I was grateful and humbled to consider myself a Southern Person of Color in that space, even if my history was not theirs. </p>
<p> </p>Mon, 14 Oct 2013 19:16:00 -0400Yahya Alazrakhttp://www.cofed.coop/road_trip_update_2_coopecon
Growing Power, Coop Fest Milwaukee, and Real Food Rising<p>I had an amazing weekend learning about local sustainable food and cooperatives! So, you know, the best kind of weekend. Here's a rundown of what happened:</p>
<p><strong>Growing Power</strong></p>
<p>If you're not familiar with Growing Power, take a minute and browse <a href="http://www.growingpower.org/">their website.</a> Food justice, intensive growing methods, bio-mimicry, working in a food desert... Growing Power's got it all. I was extremely fortunate that the day I happened to be in Milwaukee was, by complete coincidence, the one day in October that Will Allen, the founder and visionary of Growing Power, gives the tour personally.</p>
<p> <img src="https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/886703_10200473114341307_1403460740_o.jpg" alt="Will Allen and fish" width="512" height="384"></p>
<p> </p>Mon, 14 Oct 2013 18:34:00 -0400Ruby Levinehttp://www.cofed.coop/growing_power_coop_fest_milwaukee_and_real_food_rising
Early Bird Registration for NASCO Institute ends Thursday<p>Did you know that the <a href="http://www.nasco.coop/institute">2013 NASCO Institute</a> is themed "A Fire in Our Bellies: Food Justice and Cooperatives"?</p>
<p>Did you know that the NASCO Institute is a decades old gathering of coop-involved students from around the country, and that this year it's November 1-3 in Ann Arbor, Michigan?</p>
<p>Did you know that, this year, <a href="http://www.nasco.coop/institute/cofed">CoFED is a co-sponsor</a> of this amazing event, and that three of our Regional Organizers will be leading a track of workshops?</p>
<p>Did you know that <strong>priority registration and scholarship applications end on Thursday 10/10?</strong> You can save $50 if you register now, plus you may be able to access a scholarship.</p>
<p> <img src="https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cofed/pages/158/attachments/original/1381271409/NASCO_2013_web.jpg?1381271409" alt="Did you know this is a really sweet poster?" width="300" height="400" /></p>Wed, 09 Oct 2013 17:33:02 -0400Ruby Levinehttp://www.cofed.coop/nasco_institute_register
First Road Trip Update<p>So I (Yahya) started the first little bit of what will be a month of roadtrippin' with Lauryl.</p>
<p>I left Greensboro on Thursday, driving deeper and deeper into the heart of the south. The stillness of the landscape, almost as a witness to the histories (sic) here, of pain and subjugation, resistance, survival, and a quiet anticipation of hope. There were many deep breaths, and many hours of windshield mind sorts of meditation. </p>Mon, 07 Oct 2013 01:21:00 -0400Yahya Alazrakhttp://www.cofed.coop/first_road_trip_update